Attachment, Communication, and Delay during the Evacuation of the World Trade Center on September 11th

Purpose: To determine whether information gathering behaviors prior to initiating evacuation from the World Trade Center (WTC) Towers 1 and 2 on September 11th, 2001 was associated with delay and belief in the situation's danger.

Methods: Quantitative data were collected from WTC evacuees (N = 1,440) who were mailed a 10-page confidential questionnaire which addressed the timing of evacuation events, available information sources and their influence, and beliefs regarding personal safety.

Results: Various sources of information utilized prior to starting evacuation were the predictor variables. Evacuation initiation timing was delayed by communicating via devices such as cell phones and pagers, as well as exposure to mass media, regardless of which tower and floor the evacuation was initiated. Sharing information face-to-face was also associated with decreased likelihood of believing that 1) the situation was dangerous and 2) evacuating the building completely would be necessary. For those who believed they were in danger, face-to-face information gathering was associated with longer delays, whereas the opposite association was found for those who did not believe that the situation was dangerous.

Conclusion: Results highlight the importance of giving clear, explicit instructions to occupants of high rise buildings during disasters. These data indicate that when multiple, potentially conflicting information sources are available to survivors, the crucial decision to evacuate can be delayed significantly. Survivors who sense danger and discuss their decision with others are likely to further increase their delay.